The House Republican plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act would raise the number of people without health insurance by 24 million within a decade, but would trim $337 billion from the federal deficit over that time, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said on Monday. -- 3/13/2017

HJR 1, a proposal that would allow the state to draw a greater amount from New Mexico’s land grant permanent fund to pay for early childhood education cleared the House of Representatives on a 37-32 vote Wednesday night. The constitutional amendment now heads to the Senate with just over a week to go in the session. -- 3/13/2017

Smokers in New Mexico would pay an additional $1.50 a pack in taxes under a bill passed by the Senate on a 24-16 vote Wednesday. Senate Bill 231 also would increase the taxes on cigars and would include e-cigarettes in the tobacco tax for the first time. Sen. Howie Morales, D-Silver City, said the bill would benefit the state by both raising new revenue for schools and reducing the number of smokers, thereby improving the health of New Mexicans and reducing health care costs to the state. -- 3/13/2017

The New Mexico Senate today passed legislation by a vote of 24 to 16 to provide public schools a needed funding increase of $89 million per year by increasing the state’s cigarette tax by $1.50. SB 231, would direct the new revenues to strengthen New Mexico’s K-12 classrooms, which have been hit with cuts worth tens of millions of dollars. The new revenues are needed to prevent looming cuts of 5% to 7% across the board to K-12 classrooms and higher education institutions without any new revenues. -- 3/13/2017

Gun regulations in New Mexico such as: SB 259 and SB 283 may soon be rewritten in ways designed to avoid shootings in domestic violence disputes and to end free-wheeling firearm rules at the state Capitol. Other bills like: HB 50 would place new restrictions on the sale and possession of firearms are inching their way through the Democratic-controlled Legislature as lawmakers near adjournment March 18. -- 3/13/2017

A proposal to ramp up renewable energy requirements at New Mexico's investor owned utilities and cooperatives through the year 2040 has been voted down by a Senate committee on SB 312, ending chances for approval this year. The Senate Corporations Committee voted 5-3 Friday against a plan to gradually increase the share of electricity generated from solar, wind and other renewable sources to 80 percent of supplies for utilities. -- 3/13/2017